Kitten trying to mark his territory?

[AdrianCC100]

I was on the PC when I noticed the kitten in a corner. I thought he was bored so I grabbed his laser toy and attempted to get him to play with it. He loves the laser and will always chase it. So when I saw that he didn't chase it I knew something was odd. I went over to him and gave the guy a pet, but he didn't move from his spot. So I picked him up and saw a small wet spot on the floor. (In before people say I'm abusing the cat) I put his nose where the wet spot was and shouted no. I then brought him to his litter box. Minutes later, I found him doing it again and I repeat what I did earlier. More minutes pass and he is trying to do it again. I once again repeat what I did the first two times. I'm not sure why he is suddenly doing this. According to the shelter medical records where we adopted him from, he was fixed. Before today he had no problems using the litter. I didn't change the brand of litter and the litter box is clean. So I'm assuming he is trying to mark his territory.

What are some other ways I can get him to stop doing this besides my method?

[Deleted]

Try covering the spot up, with a bucket or something. See what happens, or try and move the litterbox on top of the spot.

[AdrianCC100]

Try covering the spot up, with a bucket or something. See what happens, or try and move the litterbox on top of the spot.

It isn't the same place. He'll try it in one spot, I stop him from doing it and then he tries it in another spot.

[Mifuyne]

They do this when they are not in control of their bladder/ are ill.
It's their way of saying "I'm ill even tho I cannot speak, so I will do this to get your attention".
As someone that comes from parents that had a pet shop and having multiple cats for all my life, I can tell you that this most likely has nothing to do with marking his territory.

Best thing to do is take the little fella to a vet and ask him what might be wrong.

[Talokami]

Don't do the nose in excrement trick because it won't be very effective and forms bad associations for the cat.

Even neutered, he could still be trying to mark or it might be stress. You might want to invest in a product called Feliway. It's a synthetic feline hormone that can either be sprayed or put into a plug-in diffuser. It will calm them down and works great to prevent urine spraying and marking.

[smelltheglove]

when one of my cats did this it turned out he had a UTI that almost killed him (UTI's are apparently very dangerous for male cats)

[DarkTZeratul]

I'll second the "take him to a vet" answer.

Marking wouldn't be done until he hits puberty, and if you get him fixed it won't be an issue anyway.

[Luuth]

Yeah, there may be something wrong with him. The way animal brains work is like this: They go to their liter box and bad things happen (diarrhea or painful urination), in their mind they associate the bad thing with being in the box. So, they go somewhere else because they think it wont cause the bad thing. Also, he may just be acting out, they do that too. Are you paying enough attention to him? Or, just like that one episode of The Simpsons taught me: some animals are just jerks, like people (the episode where Bart wins an Elephant).

[AdrianCC100]

They do this when they are not in control of their bladder/ are ill.
It's their way of saying "I'm ill even tho I cannot speak, so I will do this to get your attention".
As someone that comes from parents that had a pet shop and having multiple cats for all my life, I can tell you that this most likely has nothing to do with marking his territory.

Best thing to do is take the little fella to a vet and ask him what might be wrong.

He doesn't seem ill. He is still crazy as ever running around the house like a lunatic, playing with his toys, climbing all over you to be petted. He is eating and drinking normally. You're right though, could be something like that and I can't rule that out.

Yeah, there may be something wrong with him. The way animal brains work is like this: They go to their liter box and bad things happen (diarrhea or painful urination), in their mind they associate the bad thing with being in the box. So, they go somewhere else because they think it wont cause the bad thing. Also, he may just be acting out, they do that too. Are you paying enough attention to him? Or, just like that one episode of The Simpsons taught me: some animals are just jerks, like people (the episode where Bart wins an Elephant).

I play with him daily. He loves to chase the laser. He even knows if by sound, the second I pick it up and comes running. I also play fetch with him. He has these little toy mice that I'll throw and he'll go fetch and and bring it back. So he is gets a lot of attention from me.

[Talokami]

when one of my cats did this it turned out he had a UTI that almost killed him (UTI's are apparently very dangerous for male cats)

Ack yeah forgot about that! Cats don't like to broadcast when they're in pain so it's very possible he has a UTI and this is the only noticeable symptom.

Do the shelter records note how long ago he was neutered and at what age? It's possible he was fixed too early and might be having complications from it.

[Mifuyne]

I do have a few questions;
Do you keep him inside your house?
Have you had any stress lately? (also includes stuff like moving)
Do you have any other pets beside the kitten?

[Airwaves]

If its a he that is natural. If he is old enough get him desexed and it will stop.

[GKLeatherCraft]

I would also suggest a vet visit, Cats can be rather prone to Urinary issues, and then when they try and pee it hurts, and they associate the pain with the place they have been going (Litter box) so they keep trying to find somewhere else to get somewhere it stops hurting, I have quite a lot of experience with cats and that's my first thought, But ofcourse i am no Vet so cannot say for sure, But it's worth a try, Another thing you can do is if you find the kitten has urinated on the floor, Take a paper towel/tissue and pad it, then check for blood, UTI are normally easy to treat, but left on their own they can be fatal

[Deleted]

Take it to the vet. That way you can get it tested and treated or rule out medical problem. Any pain the cat experiences may only be happening when peeing. Also, it probably doesn't matter much, but if you catch it peeing then try to take it over to the litter box while it's happening (might wanna bring paper under it) and watch if the cat will finish peeing there. If it wasn't trained beforehand, you obviously, as you know, gotta train it to do it there by making it a habit for it and making the litter box it's place to pee in. I'm assuming the stuff in the litter box is probably alright. That theory about the cat experiencing discomfort (pain) when peeing and therefore changing it's places might be something. The fact that it doesn't pee in the same spot (unless it really doesn't know what it's doing) seems like a bad indication. Also, the whole no part and making it smell the pee, I'm not sure whether that would help much as it's kinda happening after the fact is over (peeing). Though, take it to the vet, explain the problem and get it checked out, keep training and moving it to the litter box when/if you catch it peeing (could observe it for some time, cat's are generally attentive to the environment except when peeing/sleeping/eating) and be sure it's okay stuff in it, so it's initially discomforting to pee there for the cat. I'm very sure, if it's a kitten, and it doesn't in general pee in the litter box that it isn't marking any territory (or has much sense of its territory or is in a mating age).

If you get neutered, I'm not sure that will stop a cat's marking of territory as someone said above, but trained (or normal) cats generally don't mark inside a house in my experience, but they can pee outside on trees/bushes to mark (which you might not notice and even on neutered pets). Though I may be wrong and the cat just needs to pee without marking in intent!

Also as a general thing, if the litterbox is close to food/water it might not wanna do it immidiately, so you could move the litter box to a seperate corner if you haven't already. I would not assume it would be marking anything if it doesn't know where its normal peeing spot is. Therefore, go to the vet and get it checked (for potential serious illness and bladder problems) and/or keep training it by moving it to the litter box when it pees.

[catcommando]

Always thought unneutered male cats only marked vertical surfaces? Not on floors?

OP: Please take him to a vet. He does sound like he's got a urinary tract infection...especially it's small spots here and there on a floor. If it's a uti, better to spend the money now to get it treated before it gets serious and costs a whole lot more. I had to take my cat to an animal emergency hospital for a blocked bladder and that was $1500 right there or euthanize him (his normal vet couldn't treat him.) So don't let this wait. Also, please don't rub your cat's nose in his mess. They've got brains the size of a quarter. They won't make the association of what they did and why you're mad. All you're doing is punishing him, and he doesn't even know why.

Good luck.

[AdrianCC100]

I do have a few questions;
Do you keep him inside your house?
Have you had any stress lately? (also includes stuff like moving)
Do you have any other pets beside the kitten?

We have him as an inside cat, yes. We were told when we adopted that he was found on a farm. The shelter will not adopt out pets that have not had a visit to the vet, so when we picked him up he was treated and marked as healthy. I guess the only stress around the house is that money has been a little tight. Yes. We have a 12 year old male cat and a 5 year old female cat. Both are fixed and healthy. The female and kitten seem to get along pretty well. I actually think my female cat adopted the kitten as her own. It's pretty cute actually. As for the old man, for the most part he and the kitten get along nicely.. That is until the kitten decides to attack the old mans tail.

[smelltheglove]

how many litter boxes do you have? if you have multiple cats sometimes they have drama over sharing. the answer could be to provide another litter box somewhere

[Åmbulance]

Have vet check for UTI, or have his balls lopped off. I had a male cat many years ago who would mark, got his man hood cut, and never happened again.

[Deleted]

(In before people say I'm abusing the cat)

Yeah so i told my wife to make me a sandwich, but she didnt make one so i hit her several times (In before people say I'm abusing the woman).
What kind of fucked up logic is this?

[AdrianCC100]

how many litter boxes do you have? if you have multiple cats sometimes they have drama over sharing. the answer could be to provide another litter box somewhere

We have two boxes.